OKC Police Discover Burglary After Driver Spots Suspicious Activity

A neighbor's security cameras recorded the suspects leaving the burglarized house.

OKLAHOMA CITY -

Surveillance video could help police catch some burglary suspects who were spotted acting suspiciously and throwing things off an Oklahoma City bridge.

A driver called police on September 16 around 1 p.m. after seeing two men on Lightning Creek Bridge at S.W. 40th Street and Pennsylvania. When police arrived the men were gone, but officers checked a drainage canal and found a large black safe. There was also some costume jewelry and envelopes full of photos, birth certificates, social security cards, and passports.

Police identified the owners of the items through the various paperwork. They went to a home in the 500 block of Hutton Street near S.W. 4th Street and Cemetery Road, and discovered the back door had been kicked in. Officers entered the house and saw it had been ransacked and burglarized.

No one was home, so police checked the caller ID on the house phone and contacted a family member. The relative contacted the homeowners.

While police waited for the homeowners to arrive, they spoke to a neighbor who said she'd seen some suspicious activity in the neighborhood that day. A man in a champagne-colored, 1996 to 2003 model Monte Carlo had parked in front of her house. He said he had tire trouble and asked to use her phone. She said he appeared to pretend to speak to someone for a few minutes, then left. The woman also told police that another neighbor had surveillance cameras around his home, and he may have recorded something.

Police spoke to that neighbor, who gave them access to his surveillance video. They saw the Monte Carlo the other neighbor mentioned, along with three men. The men walked up and down the street, knocking on doors and roaming across people's yards.

The footage also clearly showed all three men leaving through the front door of the burglarized home, carrying the stolen safe and other items.

Police spoke to the victims, who identified the belongings police found under the bridge. They also reported some cash, jewelry, and electronics were missing.

Police hope the surveillance video will help the catch the burglars. Anyone with information about the crime should call Crime Stoppers at (405) 235-7300.